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02 January 2020
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Story Valentino Ndaba
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Photo Anja Aucamp
Refilwe Xaba, Senior Assistant Officer in Entrepreneurship Development at the UFS Centre for Development Support, is the founder and CEO of Glolooks. This Bloemfontein-based company manufactures and supplies an organic, natural hair product range.
When she first developed the products, they were for personal use. Xaba evolved from an intrapreneur to an entrepreneur. She innovated a personal solution into a booming business idea. It was only in May 2016 that she decided to go into business, following growing interest in the way she maintained her hair. “I officially started in-depth research in October 2015, after years of making concoctions for myself.”
Business and books
Xaba reckons that a research background is beneficial for growing a business such as Glolooks that has a huge technical aspect. She is currently pursuing her PhD in Entrepreneurship with a focus on marketing and is planning to use her business as a case study.
Her undergraduate, honours, and master’s studies, which she completed at Kovsies, contributed to equipping Xaba with skills to grow her business. She believes in balancing education and business. “I have always been commerce-orientated. If there is a problem to be fixed, I fix it. However, people are at the centre of my heart.”
Growing Glolooks
In 2019, Glolooks opened a salon in Westdene, where customers can receive a holistic experience above and beyond merely purchasing the product. Xaba says this is one of the ways her business is being innovative when it comes to creating relationships with customers.
Businessmen based in Gauteng visited Campus
2006-05-10
A group of prominent businessmen based in Gauteng visited the Main Campus of the University of the Free State (UFS) as part of a project to build relationships and to introduce them to the UFS.
At the back from the left are Mr Vuyo Jack (chief executive officer and founder of Empowerdex), Dr Ezekiel Moraka (Vice-Rector: Student Affairs at the UFS), Mr Mavuso Msimang (chief executive officer of the State Information Technology Agency (SITA)), and Mr Peter Malungani (chairman of PEU Investments). In front are Prof Magda Fourie (Vice-Rector: Academic Planning at the UFS), Mr Moss Mashishi (chairman of Matemuku Investments), Prof Frederick Fourie (Rector and Vice-Chancellor of the UFS), Mr Moses Kgosana (chairman of KPMG) and Mr Quentin Eister (chief executive officer of Interstate Bus Lines and chairman of the Black Management Forum in the Free State).